(DARIAN)
"There you are!" Mary reaches us. "You little troublemaker! I knew I shouldn't have—"
Her voice dies, and when I look up at her, I can read the shock and fear in her eyes.
"Your Majesty," she breathes, fear thick in her voice. "Mira, come here."
But when the girl tries to move, I grip her arms lightly. "No, stay." My eyes are on the healer. "She's a shifter."
Terror flashes in her eyes. "I… Mira…"
The little girl is beginning to sense that something is wrong, and she tries to pull away from me. Dazed, I hold her tighter and look down at her. "Do you know who I am?"
She shakes her head mutely, glancing nervously over her shoulder at Mary. "How old are you?"
"S–Six."
"Six," I breathe in a hushed whisper, a strange emotion burning through me. "Seven years since we… She was pregnant. She was pregnant when they—"
Bile rises in my throat.
"She has your scent," Jimmy says in a disbelieving tone. "Darian—"
"I know."
